Friendships Forged and Boundaries Broken
by CandyNecklaces
Summary: Paige wants to make friends with the other Liars by means of pool party. Emily's not so sure. Takes place soon after Halloween, 3x13.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Takes place soon after Halloween... and yet the weather is hot, sunny pool party type weather. A slight suspension of disbelief in the weather area would be appreciated. Not super sure where this is going, but it'll be fluffy.

"You don't have to do this, you know…"

Emily paced around Paige's bedroom, wringing her hands together. Paige lay upside down on her bed, head hanging over the side, an amused smile on her lips.

"Em, stop, you're making me dizzy."

Emily playfully scowled at her girlfriend.

"How are you so fine with this?"

"How come you're not? They're your friends remember."

Emily sighed before kneeling down in front of Paige and kissing her firmly on the lips. When Emily pulled back, Paige giggled, a goofy smile on her lips. Emily would never get enough of that smile.

"Mmm… upside down kisses are even better than regular kisses."

"Like Spiderman."

"I'm more of a Batman girl myself, but I may change my mind if those kisses are what Spiderman has to offer."

Emily couldn't help but laugh at her girlfriend's ridiculousness. Her energy was definitely contagious.

"Seriously though, I just want them to love you like I do."

Emily was full on pouting now and Paige took that as her cue to sit up and be serious, helpful, girlfriend Paige. Not the Paige who could no longer feel below her waist because all the blood had rushed to her head. It took some effort, but eventually Paige managed to twist herself so she was sitting up. She reached over and grabbed Emily's hand, pulling her onto the bed beside her. Emily wrapped her arms around the other girl and rested her head on her shoulder. Paige fingers automatically found their way into Emily's hair, playing with the loose strands around her face.

"Em, it's just a pool party. They'll come, they'll swim, they'll eat some food and then they'll leave. No big. Besides, I thought they seemed happy for us as Halloween?"

"I know, but they were so awful to you before. You shouldn't have to forgive them."

Paige turned so she could look Emily in the eyes, her heart warmed by the love and concern that she found there. She took Emily's hands in her own, rubbing circles with her thumb.

"I already forgave them. They were just trying to protect you Em, and I really can't argue with that. They love you. We all have that in common actually."

Paige's goofy smile was back full force and Emily grinned, giving her girlfriend a quick peck on the lips.

"And with something that incredible in common, we'll either end up best friends or mortal enemies. I just don't know which yet."

Emily playfully swatted Paige in the stomach.

"Oof! I'm kidding, jeez. I'll charm their pants off, you'll see."

"Those better be metaphorical pants, McCullers."

Paige laughed at her girlfriend's completely unwarranted jealousy.

"Oh please, you know you're the only one for me."

"Aren't I lucky?"

Emily wrapped her arms behind Paige's neck, pulling her in closer until their lips were touching. Paige melted into the kiss; she couldn't believe how perfect life was in moments like this. They were lucky, and they both knew it. The kidnapping could have so easily torn them apart. Couples fall apart every day over far less. Instead, Paige felt like they were stronger than ever. She felt invincible and she felt safe, possibly for the first time in her life.

When they finally pulled back, both girls were laughing breathlessly.

"You sure you don't want to change your mind? Tell everyone it's cancelled and have our own private party instead?"

Paige dropped her head to Emily's shoulder with a groan.

"You have no idea how tempting that sounds, but we really can't."

"Why the hell not?"

"It's a little late; they'll be here any minute."

Just as Emily opened her mouth to protest, a knocking sound could be heard from the door downstairs. Paige gave Emily one last quick kiss, before jumping up and running out the bedroom door, laughing as she went. Emily was left alone on the bed, pouting slightly. She said a few last prayers, to whoever was listening, that her friends would be on their best behaviour. Then, hearing talking downstairs, she sighed and made her way out the door to meet her friends.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks so much for the favs/follows, they are super nice. Special thanks to Here'sWaldo, Ran, Becks, and Trinity Dower for reviewing, you guys are awesome and deserve cookies.

...

Paige bounced down the last few steps, almost tripping as she hit the landing. Collecting herself, she took a deep breath before opening the door to find Spencer, Aria and Hanna on her front porch, clad in their summer finest. Spencer and Aria were dressed in shorts and tank tops over their swim clothes. Hanna, however, had chosen to forgo any pretense, and was dressed only in a bright pink bikini top and matching bottoms. Before Paige had time to say anything, Hanna had walked past her into the hall, dropping her bags as she went.

"Oh my God Paige, your house is huge. Em didn't tell us you were loaded."

Aria smiled apologetically as she followed Hanna into the house.

"Ignore her; she has zero filter between her brain and her mouth."

"What? It's a nice house, it was a compliment."

Paige couldn't help but laugh at Hanna's lack of tact; she really did appreciate the girl's honesty.

"It's cool, thank you Hanna. You guys can head straight through to the pool if you want. There are drinks and snacks and stuff in the kitchen. Help yourself."

Hanna didn't need to be told twice and shot off down the hall, Aria in tow. Paige turned back to the open door to find Spencer still standing on the porch, looking uncomfortable. It struck Paige that it was the first time the two had been alone since Halloween.

"It's okay Spencer, you can come in. Can I take your bags or anything?"

Spencer let out a small, relieved smile as she stepped into the house, handing one of her bags to Paige.

"I didn't know what food I should bring… so I brought chips, chocolate, cupcakes, soda and juice."

Paige giggled before she could stop herself and Spencer looked mildly embarrassed.

"You really didn't have to, but thanks, you can never have too much chocolate.

Paige smiled encouragingly, trying to get Spencer to relax, but she only nodded her head slightly in agreement.

"Okay… so we should probably get this stuff in the fridge and go make sure Hanna hasn't managed to drown herself yet."

Paige turned to leave but was stopped when Spencer grabbed hold of her arm. She watched the other girl curiously, saying nothing, as she waited for Spencer to speak. As they stood in silence, neither girl noticed Emily walk down the stairs, stopping when she sensed the tension between the two. She looked on, concerned, as Spencer finally began to speak.

"I… I never told you how sorry I was."

"Spencer, stop, you really don't have too…"

"No, Paige please, I need to say this."

Paige looked like she wanted to protest again but kept her mouth shut, nodding to Spencer to continue.

"I seriously misjudged you. I let vicious gossip get the best of me and I lashed out. But then you risked your life for Emily and saved my life…

"I really didn't…"

"No, Paige, what you did was incredible, especially after how I treated you. What I'm trying to say is that I think you're one of the strongest people I've ever met, and I'm sorry I didn't see it before. I'm glad Emily has you."

Paige smiled, she was so thankful they had each other. Hesitantly she took a step toward Spencer, gauging her reaction, and pulled her in for a quick hug. When they pulled back Spencer looked slightly uncomfortable but was smiling nonetheless.

"Thanks for saying that Spencer, it really means a lot… and seriously, it's all forgiven. I know you guys just wanted to protect Emily, I'd of done the same if I thought it would keep her safe. Now, let's go have some fun and stop all this serious business. If you want you can go find the others and I'll go find Emily."

Spencer smiled one last time before leaving in search of Hanna and Aria. Paige turned to the stairs, surprised to see Emily standing there, tears shining in her eyes.

"How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough." Emily smiled adoringly as she made her way down the last few steps and took Paige in her arms. "You're amazing."

"Me? I'm pretty sure I just stood there while Spencer said nice things to me."

"She never admits she's wrong about anything. You must have really made an impression. You sure made an impression on me."

Paige grinned sheepishly, her cheeks going red. Emily giggled at her girlfriend's modesty. She couldn't believe that even after all this time; Paige still couldn't see how incredible she was. Determined to show her, Emily pulled the other girl into a deep kiss, causing Paige to let out of small whimper in surprise. Emily pushed her back against wall and threaded her fingers into the other girl's hair. Paige wasn't sure what she'd done to incite this level of passion so early in the afternoon but she wasn't going to complain. Running her hands aggressively up Emily's arms and across her back, Paige pulled Emily closer until they were flush against each other. The party was completely forgotten as the two continued to make out, too engrossed in each other to care, until the noise of someone clearing their throat broke through the haze. They both looked up to see a blushing Aria standing in the hall, looking awkwardly at her shoes.

"Um… sorry to interrupt, but Hanna wanted to know if you had any pool toys? Stupid question, I'll just go…"

"Wait…" Paige laughed as she extricated herself from her girlfriend's arms, while Emily huffed, annoyed at being interrupted for a second time that day.

"I actually do have some in the shed, I think. I'll go find them. Maybe you and Em could go grab the ice out of the freezer; I think we might need it." With that, Paige chuckled and bounced off down the hallway, leaving a frustrated Emily and a smirking Aria alone.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you guys so so much for the reviews and follows and everything, they're amazing and make this so much fun to do. I'm super sorry for the wait for this chapter, and for it being short and not that great. I got a bit stuck, then I went away, then I was busy finishing assignments, then I got sick... so yeah it took a while :P BUT, my school year is almost over so i should be able to write a lot more. I'm a little hazy as to where this story is going, so if any of you have ideas of things you'd like to see in future chapters, please let me know. I'll try my best.

...

As the sun moved farther across the sky, Emily, Aria and Spencer chose to leave the water in favour of sunbathing on deck chairs by the pool. Hanna and Paige, however, were still engrossed in an intense battle of pool jousting. Emily watched on with amusement, as Hanna used a noodle to try and knock Paige off the blow-up dolphin she was precariously perched on. Not one to be beaten at anything, Paige dodged the attack and splashed water in Hanna's face, distracting her long enough to pull the plastic crocodile right out from underneath her.

Emily was so distracted watching Paige that she didn't notice Aria and Spencer laughing next to her. Aria waved her hands in front of Emily's face, effectively snapping her back to reality.

"Em, you're staring again."

"Huh?" Emily turned to Aria but her eyes lingered on Paige.

Spencer smirked at her friend's complete inability to think of anything but her girlfriend.

"We've been trying talk to you for like ten minutes, but apparently we're not as interesting as whatever Paige and Hanna are doing."

"Sorry… what were we talking about?"

Aria burst out laughing while Spencer just shook her head, grinning. It had been a long time since she'd seen Emily so flustered over anyone.

"We wanted to know what time Paige's parents are getting back."

"Oh, they're not. They're on a business trip in Europe. They don't come back for another week."

Emily smiled to herself at the thought, a whole week to themselves. This would be the first real alone time they'd had since getting back together. She could feel butterflies in her stomach just thinking about it. No school, no parents, just the two of them for 7 glorious days. They definitely needed the down time.

"Oh my God, she's gone again."

Spencer tried to act annoyed but Emily could hear the amusement in her voice.

"Yeah Em, you're practically drooling."

Emily glared at her two snickering friends, picking up her towel and flinging it at Aria's face.

"Shut up, I am not."

Aria laughed even harder as she caught the towel, light-heartedly chucking it back at Emily.

"Aw we're just teasing, aren't we Spence?"

Spencer hesitated for a moment, deliberating over how she could convince Emily that she really had changed her mind. She didn't want there to be anymore animosity between them, she'd missed her best friend.

"Yeah… Honestly, it's nice seeing you so happy, and I think Paige seems really great. I'm sorry that I didn't trust your judgement in the first place. I thought I was protecting you."

Emily could feel her eyes tear up; grinning she leaned over and took Spencer in her arms. When she felt the other girl squeeze back she couldn't help the tears spilling down her cheeks. Slightly muffled by Spencer's shoulder, she called Aria to come join the hug, smiling even wider as she felt the small girl lightly kiss the top of her head. Emily hadn't realised how much she'd needed her friends to support her, how much she'd wanted to be able to share this amazing feeling with them. She felt like a huge weight had been lifted, she could breathe again, and she was so excited for them to know the real Paige. The Paige she loved.

Bored with their hijinks in the pool, Hanna and Paige declared it a draw and dragged themselves out of the water. As they grabbed their towels off one of the deck chairs, both girls glanced at each other as they noticed the other girls. Not wanting to interrupt, Paige began towelling herself off, and Hanna half-heartedly attempted to dry her hair. Not liking being out of the loop, she continued to eye her friends suspiciously, huffing a few times to try get their attention. Paige watched on amused as Hanna got more and more antsy.

"Okay guys, seriously, what's with all the hugging?"

The three girls laughed as they pulled back from each other, Emily wiping a few remaining tears from her eyes. Seeing concern overcome Paige's face, Aria jumped in with an explanation.

"Don't worry; they're happy tears right Em? She's just a big softie."

Paige immediately grinned because, yeah, she was well aware. Emily surprised her every day with her heart and incredible capacity for love. Paige walked over to where her girlfriend was sat and, leaning close, placed a gentle kiss to her lips. A chorus of aww-ing erupted from the girls around them. Smiling into the kiss, Paige took Emily's hands in her own and tugged her up from the chair. She brushed the last stray tears from the other girl's cheeks, smiling adoringly at her emotional mess of a girlfriend. Wrapping an arm around Emily's side, Paige turned to the other girls.

"I think it's time of some serious junk food. Who votes we all get dressed and meet back in the kitchen in fifteen minutes?"

They all made noises of agreement and started to gather their things. Paige turned back to Emily, who looked like she was about to cry again.

"How about you go up to my room and sort yourself out. I'll just show these guys where they can change and then I'll be up in a minute."

Not really trusting her voice, Emily just smiled and gave Paige a quick kiss before heading inside the house.


	4. Chapter 4

_A/N: So basically I'm an asshat and I truly am super sorry about not updating for over a month. Apparently, without actual school work to procrastinate, I don't feel in the mood the write particularly often. PLL is back now though, sparking a million and one feelings so we'll see how it goes. AND I'm back to school soon so that should help. These chapters are all so ridiculously short, all I can say is that I'm the slowest writer on the planet. Forgive me._

...

Emily stood at the sink in Paige's en-suite, trying her best to collect herself. Her eyes were red and puffy where she'd been crying, and her hair was still a mess from the pool. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she had to laugh at herself, she looked ridiculous. She was sure she was acting pretty ridiculous too, since when had she been so emotional about everything? Paige had turned her into a giant ball of mush, full of butterflies and rainbows, with no control over her feelings. No, she was Emily Fields, strong, independent woman; completely mature adult. No more crying.

Staring herself down in the mirror, Emily pointed her finger at her reflection, a look of determination on her face. "Get a hold of yourself!"

A chuckling sound behind her made her jump, immediately embarrassed when she saw Paige's reflection in the mirror. Paige walked over to Emily, snaking her arms around the other girl's waist, effectively preventing her from turning around.

Paige began to kiss a trail from Emily's shoulders, to her neck, stopping only to murmur softly in her ear. "Do you talk to yourself often?"

Emily let out a breathy giggle, unable to keep her eyes open as Paige continued to place kisses across her skin. "Yeah, I do, is that a problem?"

Paige nipped lightly just behind Emily's ear and the other girl let out a tiny groan.

"Nah, crazy girls are hot."

Emily could feel Paige grin against her skin, a light tickle that spread warmth across her entire body. Feeling Emily shiver against her, Paige stepped back, letting her turn around. Met with such an intense gaze from the other girl, Paige cleared her throat, unsuccessfully trying to diffuse the tension in the room.

"So… I think today is going very well, don't you think?"

Emily grimaced and attempted to bury her face against Paige's shirt. Paige found herself automatically going to kiss the top of her head, chuckling into her hair as she did so.

"You're adorable."

She heard Emily mumble something incoherent into her shirt. Paige let out a small giggle, taking Emily's face in her hands so she could look her in the eyes.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing."

Emily leaned forward, kissing Paige quickly on the lips before wriggling herself out of her girlfriend's grip and manoeuvring her way out of the bathroom. Paige grinned, shaking her head as she was left alone. She really was ridiculously happy with how well everything seemed to be going. She felt like, just maybe, this might be her chance to finally find somewhere she felt comfortable, to have real friends. These girls could become her home.

Paige was snapped out of her thoughts as Emily stuck her head back round the doorframe, a practically animal look on her face. Paige instantly felt her face flush as the other girl stared her down, sparking an electricity between them that always managed to take her breath away.

"Were you planning on staying in there… because I might need some help getting out of these wet clothes."

…

20 minutes later the two girls finally managed to finish getting dressed; only due to Paige's insistence that Emily's friends would probably notice their absence. As they wandered down the hall, they could hear hushed arguing from within the kitchen. Emily gave Paige a mildly panicked look before hesitantly making her way towards the commotion. Once inside the two of them stood, flabbergasted in the doorway, trying to make sense of what they were seeing.

Aria was wiping up what looked to be the remnants of an entire carton of eggs from the floor, grumbling something about how she doesn't even eat eggs and her being made to clean them up was cruel and insensitive. Spencer and Hanna, completely ignoring her, were standing by the stove arguing.

"You can't just decide to start cooking in someone else's house Hanna, it's rude. You could burn the whole house down."

Despite Spencer frantically waving a frying pan in her face, Hanna looked like she couldn't care less. She shrugged, the prospect of concussion by cooking implement clearly not bothering her in the slightest.

"Whatever, I'm hungry, and those two are too busy upstairs doing it to cook for me."

Paige and Emily watched on, thoroughly amused at the conversation transpiring. Paige only wished she had some popcorn and a video camera.

"Hanna, this isn't even the right kind of pan!"

As it looked like Hanna might be in real danger of being thwacked on the head at any second, Paige thought it best to step in. She walked over to the bickering girls and cleared her throat loudly. Hanna immediately lit up and turned to Paige, while Spencer tried to subtly hide the pan/weapon on the counter behind her.

"Finally you guys, thank God, Spence wouldn't let me anywhere near the stove, and I'm starving."

Spencer, Emily and Aria simultaneously rolled their eyes at Hanna's dramatics. Paige patted the pouting blonde on the shoulder as she moved to grab something out of the cupboard.

"Don't panic, I'll cook something. Given it looks like we're out of eggs, so whatever you were planning is out of the question... how about I make us some pasta?"

Spencer and Hanna turned to Aria as Paige spoke, both completely shocked and bewildered as to how the eggs had ended up on the floor. They at least had the decency to look slightly apologetic.

"You're welcome", Aria huffed as she finished clearing up the mess and stood up to join the group of girls.

Paige came back to the stove with an armful of ingredients, a bag of pasta held between her teeth.

"Hmmm?" Emily giggled as her girlfriend attempted to speak through the plastic in her mouth. Paige dumped the stuff on the side and playfully scowled at the other girl.

"I said… I'll make this and you guys can be on salad duty."

Emily saluted, failing to keep a serious expression on her face.

"Yes, Sir!"


	5. Chapter 5

_Just a short sort of in-between chapter for you all._

...

It took Emily all of half a minute to decide that she was not going to be assisting with salad preparations after all. Apparently Hanna, Aria and Spencer had some strong opinions on exactly what should and should not be included in a salad, and Emily just could not compete. Obviously there was a good reason the four of them had never tried cooking together before, pizza and Chinese take-out all the way.

Instead she'd dedicated herself to being in charge of music. Absentmindedly flipping through songs on her playlist, she kept getting distracted watching Paige. There was something about the way that Paige seemed so comfortable and in charge when she moved around her kitchen that meant the other girl couldn't take her eyes off her. Paige cooked as confident as she swam and it was making Emily fall even more in love with her.

"Em... you've skipped like the last 50 songs, just pick one already."

Emily looked up, startled, to find everyone staring at her, Hanna giving her a weird look as she spoke. She hastily picked a song, not even really sure what she'd selected, and her friends seemed to be satisfied, going back to chopping the few vegetables they'd all agreed were suitable. Paige, however, kept watching Emily, a smirk on her lips. Emily knew she'd been caught.

Abandoning the ipod, Emily jumped up and sidled over to Paige standing by the stove.

"So... how's dinner going?"

Paige leaned over to give Emily a quick kiss, still smirking, while continuing to stir to pot in front of her.

"The sauce is mostly done so we're just waiting for the pasta to cook. Wanna try it?"

Paige laughed at the mildly horrified look on Emily's face as she presented her with a spoonful of sauce to taste.

"You're adorable. No, seriously, it's good I promise. I'm not trying to poison you."

Still looking sceptical, Emily leaned forward to take the spoon in her mouth, eyes on Paige the entire time. After a few seconds Emily let out a moan and Paige thought she might melt. She should start cooking for her girlfriend more often if that's the kind of reaction she can expect.

"So... what do you think?"

Emily took the spoon from her mouth and tapped her lips, as if deeply considering the question. "It's aright."

"You're mean."

Paige laughed, playfully shoving Emily in the shoulder. Emily shrugged, trying to act nonchalant despite the grin on her face.

"What? Did you want me to lie? It's not my fault you can't cook."

"Well I never." Paige gasped in mock offense, crossing her arms and turning away from the other girl. Emily giggled, they'd clearly spent too many nights watching old movies, they were getting far too dramatic. She was about to admit that actually Paige's cooking was incredible, and she'd be forced to cook far more often, when Aria cut in.

"Uh, weirdos... if you're quite finished, the pasta water is boiling over."

Paige turned and hastily managed to get the water under control whilst Emily watched on, amused by her blushing girlfriend. Paige was trying so hard to make everything perfect and Emily was pretty damn sure was dating the greatest girl in the world. Swept up in a wave of emotion, Emily found herself talking before she had a chance to think about what she was saying.

"Hey, what if we made this a sleepover tonight? With all of us I mean."

Paige was slightly taken aback but smiling none the less.

"Yeah, I mean if you want too. I'm sure we can make enough beds… what do you guys think?"

As Aria and Hanna tried to look as though they hadn't just been eavesdropping on their conversation, Spencer merely shrugged.

"I brought alcohol, and it's not a school night… so I say we party."

Aria looked at Spencer incredulously, "Jesus Spence, how badly did you think today was gonna go?"

Spencer looked slightly sheepish for a second but Paige just laughed, ignoring them and turning to Emily instead.

"So you're not worried anymore?"

"Nah, they clearly already love you, I should've known they would."

Paige grinned, leaning in for kiss, wrapping her arms round Emily's waist.

"As long as you always love me more."


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I'm just going to stop apologising for the long waits and short updates... apparently that's just how it goes. I hope you guys enjoy yourselves anyway. I'm thinking there will be maybe two or three more chapters to this, just to finish off the night. It's been fun. ALSO... there's a swear word in this chapter so, you know, prepare yourselves.

...

45 minutes later, the girls had finished devouring Paige's cooking and were sprawled across the many various surfaces of the lounge room. The room was silent, except for every so often when one of them would let out a groan at having eaten too much. Paige was sat in an arm chair, with Emily perched half on top of her, snuggled against her side. Paige was content playing with the loose threads in the knees of her girlfriend's jeans until she heard a light snore from the other side of the room. Sure enough, when she looked over, Paige saw Hanna fast asleep on the floor, drooling on one of her mother's fanciest cushions.

Taking that as her cue to actually _do _something, Paige shuffled out from under a disgruntled Emily, giving her an apologetic smile before clearing her throat as loud as she could. Spencer and Aria glanced up from the magazine they were flicking through, while Hanna remained unconscious on the floor.

"So… I've never actually been to a uh, "slumber party"", Paige winced slightly at her own use of air quotes, "but I feel like we should probably be doing things other than sleeping and reading trashy magazines".

Spencer looked relieved as she sat up and threw the magazine onto the coffee table.

"Thank God, there are only so many times you can read about celebrity diets before your brain starts to dissolve. What do you suggest?"

Paige perched herself on the arm of the chair, ignoring Emily who was still glaring at her for interrupting the canoodling. "We could be play cards…"

"Nooooo…" Hanna groaned loudly into the cushion she was laying on, "Spencer's mean when she plays cards."

"Whatever, just because you can't handle anything more intense than 'Go Fish', does not make it my fault."

Emily piped in, "I'm with Hanna on this one, that time we played poker…"

"I gave you all your money back, what are you complaining about?" Spencer huffed.

Hanna finally managed to push herself up off the floor, complete with an over-exaggerated groan, and glared pointedly in Spencer's direction. "No cards."

Aria hopped up from the couch, bouncing over to browse the collection of cases sitting under the huge TV on the far wall.

"We could do what guys do when they hang out…"

Hanna grimaced, "ew, Aria no."

Aria rolled her eyes. "I meant video games. Please, don't tell me whatever it was you were just thinking."

"Oh, heh", Hanna chuckled, blushing slightly.

Paige smirked, "I'm up for it. Mario Kart?"

Aria nodded enthusiastically and Hanna shrugged, looking like she couldn't care less.

"That's like the racing one, right… with the weird little creatures?"

Paige couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, that's the one. Spencer?"

Spencer muttered something along the line of, "I'd prefer a game that requires actual skill and intelligence", but nodded none the less.

Paige turned lastly to her girlfriend beside her.

"What about you, my sweet, joining us for what is sure to be a battle for the ages?"

Emily smiled at Paige, reaching up for a quick kiss.

"I might put myself on refreshment duty instead; this could go on for a while."

"What do you mean?" Paige looked faintly confused, cocking an eyebrow.

Emily laughed loudly, patting Paige on the knee as she jumped up, backing slowly toward the kitchen.

"Just be careful what you go getting yourself into, that's all I'm saying."

…

"Oh my God, Spencer! Stop knocking me off, this isn't fair," Hanna whined loudly, having just fallen off the track for the fourth time that race.

Refusing to take her eyes off the screen for a moment, Spencer bit back.

"I told you not to pick Princess Peach, Bowser owns Princ- No! Wait… Motherfucker!"

Sitting cross-legged beside the others on the floor, Paige did a little shoulder-dance.

"Oh yeah… Toad strikes again. Suck it, Hastings."

Emily walked back in to the room to see Spencer looking like she was ready to throw the Wiimote at the side of Paige's head. She dumped an arm full of junk food onto the couch and laughed as both Hanna and Aria immediately threw their controllers down and hurried over to her.

Aria looked completely horrified as she slumped down on the cushions.

"I knew Spencer was competitive, but you could have warned us about Paige. The two of them have managed to turn Wii into a blood sport."

Hanna collapsed down onto the couch dramatically, half on top of Aria and half on top of the pile of food.

"Can there be alcohol now?"

Emily shook her head, smirking as she pulled a bottle full of some kind of fluorescent pink drink out from under Hanna's backside and handed it to her.

"What did you guys expect, those two used to play field hockey together, remember? I say leave them to it; they probably have some pent-up feelings to resolve. Hopefully they'll both still be in one piece at the end of it."

Hanna stopped sipping her drink for a moment, the bottle already half empty, and shrugged.

"As long as they don't notice we're gone, I'm not getting accused of "not taking the competition seriously" again."

Spencer made a noise similar to that of a dying elephant, or what they presumed a dying elephant would sound like, making all three of the girls on the couch jump.

"Alright, McCullers. Rainbow Road, you and me. Let's go."

Aria laughed, reclining further into the couch cushions.

"Somehow, Han, I don't think they really care what we do."

…

After a record number 21 races, the 21st being a tie breaker where Paige beat Spencer by all of 2.5 seconds, the two finally called it quits. Paige bounced over to Emily, grinning from ear to ear, and leaned down to kiss her passionately. Emily was taken aback, having not been paying all that much attention to the game or its apparent end, but quickly responded. Wrapping both hands around her girlfriend's neck and threading them into her hair, Emily pulled Paige down forcefully. Paige had to brace herself on the back of the couch to stop from falling completely on top of the other girl. Emily could feel Paige smiling into the kiss as they heard Hanna and Aria shuffling beside them. Releasing Paige, Emily turned to her friends, trying her best to look at least a little apologetic. Hanna just grinned back at her, pushing Aria to stand up.

"You guys feel free to continue, Aria and I are gonna go console Spencer on her loss."

The two began to walk away but Hanna suddenly doubled back, scooping up the last three bottles of booze off the couch. "We'll need these."

Paige watched them go; thankful Emily had such accepting friends, before grabbing the other girl by the hand and pulling her up off the couch.

"C'mon, you. I'm looking to get my alcohol on, and Hanna just stole the last of Spencer's girly drinks."

When Emily looked like she was going to object to being moved, Paige dropped her voice to barely above a whisper, leaning in so her lips could graze her girlfriend's ear.

"Would my lady care to accompany me to the kitchen, it's ever so empty and dark, I might need someone to hold on to."

Emily shivered, she was completely gone. She was pretty sure she'd follow Paige anywhere she asked at that moment, no questions, no complaints.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: So half the reason this took so long was that somehow kissing happened and I couldn't write it. If it seems clunky or awkward, that's why.

...

Paige and Emily stumbled blindly into the dark kitchen, completely wrapped up in each other, all lips and hands and breathy giggles. Neither one was paying much attention to their surroundings until Paige's hip collided with the stone bench-top. A resounding thwack echoed through the empty room, followed immediately by a loud groan from Paige. She gripped on to Emily, who was trying her best not to laugh.

"Are you alright?"

"Uh huh", Paige muttered through gritted teeth.

Emily pulled away slightly and placed a kiss just above Paige's eyebrow, murmuring against her skin.

"Are you sure? Cause you kind of sound like you're about to pass out."

Paige shivered, Emily's lips tickling her skin. "I'm tough, I can take it."

Emily laughed, she was sure that would have sounded more convincing had Paige not needed to hold on to her just to stay upright.

"Yeah, yeah, you're a real life Braveheart. Here, sit down."

Emily helped Paige slide herself down the edge of the workbench until she was firmly sat on the ground. As Emily tried to go in search of a light switch, Paige let out a whine and gripped tightly to Emily's hands, refusing to let go. Emily tried half-heartedly to tug her hands free, before giving up and plonking herself down next to her girlfriend with a huff and an eye-roll.

"You really want to sit here in the dark?"

"I do."

When Emily said nothing to that, Paige scooted over slightly, snuggling up to the other girl.

"Our eyes will adjust. Besides, I don't need to see you to know how beautiful you look right now."

Emily fought hard to keep from smiling at her girlfriend's cheesy line, burying her face into Paige's neck instead. "You're so lame."

"Yeah… but you're the crazy one who thinks it's cute."

Emily plucked her head up and eyed Paige for a few moments, a look of exaggerated consideration on her face. Paige grinned back at her but her smile began to falter as she waited for Emily respond. Seeing the panic flash across Paige's face, Emily gave in and turned to wrap her arms around the other girl's neck. She leaned in until she could feel Paige's breath on her skin, laughing lightly at the look of confusion on her face.

"You're right. I am a little crazy and I definitely think you're cute."

At that Emily leaned in the last few centimetres, brushing their lips together, her fingers playing absentmindedly in Paige's hair. Emily placed a soft kiss to the corner of Paige's mouth, delighted as the other girl sighed, a dazed smile forming on her lips.

"How do you do that?"

Paige spoke so quietly, barely above a whisper, that Emily was unsure if she'd meant to speak at all. Emily placed another kiss on the other side of Paige's mouth, murmuring against her skin.

"Do what?"

Paige shivered, the feeling of Emily's lips ghosting over her own being both too much to handle and not enough, all at once. She felt her eyes close involuntarily as she fought hard to control her breathing.

"That. You barely touch me and my head swims. One second we're joking around about how I just grievously injured myself…"

Emily pouted at her playfully and Paige elbowed her in the stomach before ducking her head shyly.

"…but then, the next moment, you kiss me and I just… my mind… it goes numb, and all I can think about is you. Kissing you. You manage to make me feel so safe and warm and comfortable… and enough, for the first time in my life. You're incredible, and it's too much sometimes, for me to understand."

Paige glanced back up to find Emily's eyes on hers; glistening in the moonlight finding it's way in through the kitchen window. Paige instinctively brought her thumb up to wipe a stray tear from her girlfriend's cheek, concerned until Emily let out a watery smile.

"God, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you cry. I promised there'd be no more tears toda-"

Emily brought a finger up to Paige's lips, cutting her off.

"I love you, Paige. Like, really freaking love you. Please don't ever forget that."

Without giving her a chance to respond, Emily clasped her hand in Paige's hair, pulling her closer before crushing their lips together. Paige's hand subconsciously found their way to the hem of Emily's shirt as she lost herself in the kiss. She almost moaned as her fingertips slid under the edge of the fabric, Emily's skin fluttering under her touch.

…

"So… who wants to be the one to go and rescue my alcohol?"

Without blinking, Aria stuck her hand in the air, her other hand dropping her cards in a heap in front of her. "I nominate Hanna."

Hanna glared at her friend, throwing her cards on top of the pile. "Aria! It's Spencer's booze, why do I have to be the one to go in there? They could be doing anything."

"It's a kitchen Han, I very much doubt they're going to be going at it on the floor."

"Uh huh, you go in there then."

Spencer opened her mouth to speak before rolling her eyes and picking up the pack to shuffle. Hanna smirked, feeling pretty triumphant for just having won an argument with Spencer. Aria laughed at her friends, glad that at least she had their ridiculousness to amuse her while they waited for the other two to return.

"Another round, then? Spence and I are still tied for Uno champion of the universe."

…

Back in the kitchen, Paige and Emily were sprawled on the floor, oblivious to the world around them. Paige had managed to manoeuvre herself on top of Emily, who was trying her best to remember to breathe as Paige's fingers trailed up her sides. Paige shifted so that she could get better access to Emily's neck, determined to leave her mark as she kissed along the soft skin she found there. Paige's movements, however, caused her thigh to slip between Emily's and she was abruptly pushed to the floor.

"We need to stop."

Slightly stunned, Paige sat up and brushed her hair from her face. "Uh, okay. Sure."

Emily stood up, slightly out of breath as she laughed at her girlfriend's adorable this-is-not-a-pout face. She extended her hand, pulling Paige to her feet and moving in for one last kiss. Paige smiled against Emily's lips, laughing when Emily broke the kiss and took two very deliberately steps away.

"Sorry, that was amazing, you're amazing, but the way we were heading..." Emily shook her head, trying to clear the haze from her brain. "When we do, actually uh, do that, it will not be on your kitchen floor and I very much hope my friends will not be in the next room."

Paige blushed, delighted in just how flustered she'd managed to make her girlfriend.

"Okay, so no more of that then. In that case…" Paige cautiously navigated herself around the kitchen counter, glad when she managed it without bumping into anything else. She rifled through the cupboard until she found the bottle of vodka she was looking for, dangling it in front of her so that the liquid sparkled in the moonlight. "…let's go back and join the party."


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm a horrible person and the slowest writer on the planet. I hope this goes a little way to fill the Paily shaped hole that's developed over the last three weeks.

* * *

"Truth or dare! Truth or dare! Truth or dare!" Hanna bounced up and down on her knees, doing her best impression of a five year old on a sugar rush. Spencer was sprawled on the floor alongside her, trying to shuffle out of the way as Hanna's bouncing form got closer to her face. "Han, no…"

Spencer glared at her friend but Hanna was far too hyper to care, ignoring her and turning to the other three in the room. She figured if she only got louder and louder, they'd have to give in eventually.

"Truth or dare! Truth or dare! Truth or dare!"

Aria flung a cushion at her head, Hanna ducking out the way far more gracefully than should've been possible at that point in the evening. The grin on her face not faltering for a second, she turned to Paige and Emily who were sat on the couch. Emily looked to Paige for some kind of excuse but Paige just shrugged, turning her attention back to the tiny plaits she was making in Emily's hair.

"Well, I mean we're all in relationships so, what fun could we have? Besides, there's really nothing we could ask, we tell each other everything."

"Oh, I highly doubt that," Spencer piped in from across the room, grabbing on to the hem of Hanna's shirt to help her sit up. She noticed Emily giving her a death glare and chuckled, her friend's obvious state of panic piquing her interest. "Let's do it."

Emily turned to Paige, hoping for back-up, only to find her smirking back at her. She cringed. "No…"

Paige mimicked Emily, nodding eagerly. "Yes…"

"Nooo…"

"Yeeessss…"

"You're drunk."

"Yes…"

"Christ, fine! But don't expect me to play nice."

…

Once everyone had liquored up they sat in a circle on the carpet. Paige sat herself down next to Emily and wrapped her arms around her, nuzzling her face into the crook of Emily's neck.

"It'll be fun I swear… You can even ask me dirty questions."

As Paige murmured teasingly against her skin, Emily blushed, her scowl shifting into an easy smile. Paige grinned triumphantly, sitting back up straight and giving Emily a quick peck to the cheek before turning to the others.

"I think Hanna should go first 'cause this was her idea."

Hanna's face lit up as she turned immediately to Spencer sitting next to her.

"Truth or dare?"

Spencer cocked an eyebrow and smirked, "truth."

"What's the weirdest place you and Toby have had sex?"

Paige made a weird sort of gurgling, spluttering noise as she managed to breath in a mouthful of her drink. Emily pat her on the back, turning away to hide her face as she tried fruitlessly not to laugh.

"Starting easy, Han?"

Hanna shrugged, "What? It's a reasonable question, I wanna know."

"Toby has his own place, with a bed, so… but I guess before that we did it in his truck a few times."

Hanna rolled her eyes, clearly disappointed by Spencer's answer.

"Whatever, you're missing out. Mine and Caleb's first time was in this tent in the middle of the woods and let me tell you-"

"My turn", Spencer cut in, feeling far too sober to hear the intimate details of Hanna's extracurricular camping activities. "Emily, truth or dare?"

Emily levelled a determined glare at Spencer, challenging her. "Dare."

Spencer looked surprised, her eyebrows piqued in interest. "Brave… Okay, I dare you to take your shirt off for the next two questions."

Emily dropped open her mouth, trying to seem more horrified than was actually true.

"What the hell, none of us are 12 year old boys Spence."

Paige grinned, looking like she was about to disagree but Emily quickly pushed a finger to her lips, cutting her off. "You keep your mouth shut."

"Rules are rules Em," Aria reasoned, "besides, it's not like it's anything we haven't all seen before."

"Fine, but you better all feel privileged. I don't take my clothes off for just anybody."

Spencer laughed; she knew full well that Emily couldn't care less about showing a little skin. Emily shrugged off her top, revealing a black and blue lacy bra that she'd secretly managed to change into as a surprise for Paige later on. The girl in question bit her lip, feeling her brain short-circuit as her eyes locked on her girlfriend's now completely exposed skin. Paige couldn't stop herself flashing back to the kitchen, the feeling of Emily's body beneath her as they kissed.

In the back of her mind she heard Hanna make a comment about needing to start shopping wherever Emily shops and she shook her head, trying valiantly to clear her thoughts away. Shifting her focus back to present, Paige caught Emily's knowing gaze in the corner of her eye. Refusing to admit embarrassment, she leaned in to kiss Emily lightly on the cheek, mumbling against her skin. "My turn… Aria, truth or dare?"

"Truth"

"If you had to kiss one person in this room, who would it be?"

Aria smirked, "Spencer, obviously."

Across the room Spencer wooped as Hanna let out a muttered "whatever" and rolled her eyes, gesturing in Emily's direction. "It's Em's turn."

Emily laughed at Hanna's crestfallen expression, chucking a bag of jellybeans at her to stop her from pouting.

"Han, truth of dare?"

Hanna pondered her answer, absent-mindedly picking out a handful of green jellybeans from the packet.

"Uhhh… dare, bring it on."

"Okay, I dare you to go outside and jump in the pool."

Hanna cocked an eyebrow, "naked?"

Emily shook her head, amused; she should have expected that from Hanna.

"In your clothes… or I guess in your underwear if you don't want your clothes getting wet."

"Oh, okay." Hanna shrugged, looking slightly disappointed. Quickly shovelling jellybeans into her mouth, she jumped up from the ground and bounced toward the door, striping off her shirt as she went.

Laughing at the almost immediate sound of Hanna splashing into the pool Emily grabbed her shirt, ignoring the playful pout Paige was giving her.

"And with that I think I'll be putting my top back on, Aria's turn."

"Who's hasn't gone yet? Paige?" Aria asked, "Truth or dare?"

Paige sighed, realising she wasn't that eager to end up in the cold pool with Hanna. "Truth."

"Who was your first kiss?"

Emily watched on, amused, as Paige scrunched up her nose in disgust.

"Jimmy Matthews. Fifth grade." Paige paused, hoping she'd said enough but all three girls just glared at her until she sighed and continued.

"We were behind the music room and he asked if I could help him with his flute," Paige rolled her eyes as Emily coughed slightly beside her. "We were learning Silent Night for the Christmas play and I was better at it than him. Anyway, I showed him how to play it, and then he kissed me out of nowhere and… I cried. Luckily he freaked out and ran away after that and never tried to do it again."

"Awww," all three girls made sympathetic noises as Hanna walked back in from the pool, making sure to drip on every single one of them before taking her place on the floor.

Emily couldn't help but laugh. "I can't believe you play the flute, I never knew that."

"Well I quit pretty soon after that, told my parents swimming might be a more beneficial extracurricular."

"I should send him a thankyou card," Emily joked, "otherwise we might never have met."

Hanna finished drying her hair, feigning throwing the towel at Emily before chucking it carelessly behind her. "What are we talking about?"

Emily nudged Paige playfully, "her first kiss with a guy."

"I cried," added Paige.

"Don't worry, me too," Hanna laughed. "What about your first kiss with a girl?"

"I cried then too," Paige blushed, turning to Emily who was looking at her with an adoring smile, "but it was still amazing." Emily leaned in and pressed a sweet kiss to Paige's lips, lingering slightly as the love and alcohol overwhelmed her senses, making her head swim. They pulled back to find all three others girl grinning at them, Hanna looking like she'd just seen puppies rather than people.

"Em, you were Paige's first lady-kiss? That's so romantic! When? Where? Who kissed who!?"

Emily shook her head, laughing, "I think we're going to keep that story to ourselves for now. Take your turn."

Hanna briefly looked disappointed before shrugging, confident that she could pry information out of Emily at a later date and ready to get back to the game.

"Aria, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Hanna pouted, "Boring, but whatever. Would you still love me if I slept with your boyfriend?"

Aria narrowed her eyes, considering the question. "Are you planning on sleeping with my boyfriend?"

"No," Hannah smirked. "Just thought I'd check."

"I think I'd be pretty angry," Aria sighed in mock seriousness, "but I guess I'd probably still love you. Just warn me okay, if you're ever planning on it."

"Yes, ma'am."

"As heart-warming as this display of female friendship is," Spencer cut in, "it's my turn. Hanna, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

"What is number one on your bucket list?"

"Seriously Spence, did you use up all of your pg-13 ideas on Emily?" Hanna rolled her eyes. "Fine, easy, to meet Victoria Beckham… and make-out with her husband."

Spencer shook her head in disbelief but Hanna just shrugged. "What? Spice girls, okay, and he's still hot, even if he is like 40 now."

Completely unable to form words, Spencer took a large swig of her drink, gesturing to Paige to just take her turn.

"Alrighty… Em, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

Paige hummed, biting her lip as she tried to think of something she could ask when Spencer leaned over and whispered in her ear. Paige laughed, grinning mischievously as she turned back to her girlfriend.

"Have you ever had a dirty dream about someone in this room? Other than me obviously." Paige smirked at Emily's flustered expression; she had to admire Spencer's evil mind.

Emily looked pleadingly at Paige, pouting in a desperate attempt to get out of the question. "I don't want to answer that."

"So you have then," Hanna chuckled. "Come on Em, 'fess up, it was about me wasn't it?"

Emily grimaced. "I don't have to say who, that's not how the game works. If you're all satisfied that I've embarrassed myself enough, I think it's my turn. Paige, truth or dare?"

Paige gulped, slightly concerned by the sly smile on Emily's face. "Uh, dare?"

"I dare you to kiss…," Emily paused, a devilish glint her eyes. "Spencer."

Paige's face paled instantly, a strangled squeak escaping her mouth. Spencer's eyes widened. "Huh," she nodded, clearly impressed with Emily's guts.

Emily watched Paige start to panic as she tried desperately to come up with excuses. She knew Paige would bargain pretty much anything to get out of it; she just wanted to watch her squirm a little bit. What she hadn't counted on was Spencer's mischievous streak. Before she could protest, Spencer cupped both sides of Paige's face and kissed her hard.

Paige's brain short-circuited. She couldn't even begin to comprehend what was happening. Spencer was kissing her, and she was kissing her back. She couldn't help but think this must have been some kind of alcohol induced hallucination, no other explanation made sense. All thought went out the window, however, as she felt Spencer bite down on her lip, causing an involuntary moan.

The other three girls sat in stunned silence, this was not was Emily had had in mind. At the sound of her moan, Emily snapped out of her shock and yanked Paige away from Spencer.

"Hey! What the hell!? Neither of you are _that _drunk."

Paige blushed furiously, eyes wide as she slowly realised what had just happened. Spencer rocked back on her knees, a smug smile on her face as she casually wiped at her lip with her thumb.

Seeing the fury in Emily's eyes, Hanna quickly jumped up, dragging Spencer up with her.

"Looks like the game is over guys, who wants more snacks? I want more snacks. Spencer, come help me get more snacks."

Aria hopped up off the floor and chased the others into the kitchen, leaving Emily and Paige alone.


End file.
